Lot 63
  • 63

Felice Rubbiani

Estimate
30,000 - 40,000 USD
bidding is closed

Description

  • Felice Rubbiani
  • A pair of still lifes with fruit and birds in landscapes
  • both oil on canvas, in elaborately carved and gilt wooden frames

Provenance

Henry Clay Gibson, circa 1881, Maybrook mansion, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania;
Thence by descent to his daughter Mary Kay Gibson;
John W. Merriam, circa 1956, Maybrook mansion, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania;
Robert Lockyer, Maybrook Mansion, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.

Condition

Both works have been relined. Both works are under a uniformly dirty and discolored varnish and would brighten considerably with a surface clean. UV light reveals minimal retouches, though a few scattered retouches are visible in the composition with unbroken plate throughout the body of the bird, along top center of the background, and around tree at middle left. The other composition has no discernible significant retouches. Both works held in elaborate gilt frames.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

An accomplished still-life painter, Felice Rubbiani worked predominantly in Modena and was employed by Duke Rinaldo I d'Este (1655–1737), who commissioned paintings from him for the nuptial celebrations of his son, Francesco II and Charlotte Aglaé d'Orléans.1  

A pair of still lives in the Galleria Estense, Modena, are similarly composed of fruits tumbling from a broken porcelain bowl, with a bird perched upper left.2

1. F. Zeri, La natura morta in Italia, Milan 1989, p. 430.
2. Ibid., p. 431, reproduced.